


The Season of Love (and Lingerie)

by ericsonclan



Series: Ericson's Diner AU [16]
Category: The Walking Dead (Telltale Video Game)
Genre: F/F, F/M, Fluff, Lingerie
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-13
Updated: 2020-04-13
Packaged: 2021-03-01 22:54:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,655
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23624929
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ericsonclan/pseuds/ericsonclan
Summary: Louis and Violet are Valentine's Day shopping together while Clementine and Prisha do some shopping of their own...
Relationships: Clementine/Louis (Walking Dead: Done Running), Prisha/Violet (Walking Dead: Done Running)
Series: Ericson's Diner AU [16]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1688374
Kudos: 13





	1. Valentine Shopping

**Author's Note:**

> (by Laura)

“Vi, what kind of stuffed animal should I get for Clem: the mouse or the elephant?” Louis stood before Violet, holding a blue elephant and a pink mouse, each plush clasping its own tiny plush heart pillow.

“Seriously, you’re getting her that as well? On top of the flowers and the chocolate and the card?”

Louis shrugged happily. “It’s my first Valentine’s Day with a girlfriend! Of course I’m gonna go all out,”

“Please tell me you haven’t hired one of those singing telegrams for her,”

Louis’ face lit up in excitement.

“No! Forget I said that! Erase it from your mind!” Violet looked at the plushies and sighed. “I guess the elephant is less corny,”

“OK!” Louis tossed it in the cart with all of his other romantic purchases. “Soooo, what have you found for Prisha?”

“Nothing! I can’t find anything in this fucking store that doesn’t make me want to puke with how sappy it is. I can’t give any of this to her; she’ll think I’m an idiot!”

“Aaw, c’mon, don’t you think that’s being a bit pessimistic? I’m sure whatever you choose she’ll love,” Louis paused, distracted by an animatronic pair of Valentine’s pigs. He pushed the “Try Me” button and they began to gyrate against one another to “Cheek to Cheek”.

Violet rolled her eyes. “There’s no way in hell I’m letting you buy that. Clem would be terrified,”

“Aaw, c’mon, I wasn’t seriously thinking of buying it!”

“Riiight. Well, c’mon. I’ll buy this stupid card and then I’m letting you buy three things from that cart,”

“Five!”

“Four. Now let’s go!”

“I wonder what Prisha and Clem are planning on their end,” Louis mused as he pushed the cart toward the cash register. “Maybe flowers?”

“Clem and Prisha are too smart to buy into all this Valentine’s Day crap. They’re probably just at home right now doing whatever they normally do in their off hours.

“Yeah…” Louis sighed. “Maybe you’re right,”

\---

“Damn, Clem, that one is smoking hot!” Prisha nodded in approval as Clementine exited the dressing room wearing a beige teddy. “Louis is gonna lose his freaking mind when he sees you in that,”

“You think?” Clementine smiled shyly as she slowly spun around. “It doesn’t read too junior to you?”

“I don’t think so. What do you think of mine?” Prisha struck a casual, sexy pose, her hand on her hip. The plum colored lace contrasted beautifully with her skin, and the underwear left little to the imagination.

“It’s certainly not juvenile. I think Violet might literally faint if you showed her that,”

“You think?” Prisha self-consciously scratched the back of her neck. “I hope I find something she likes. It’s so hard to tell with Violet sometimes.

“She’s not exactly the easiest person to read,”

“And she clams up whenever I ask her about anything physical. I mean, it’s not like I need her to do anything in particular. I just want to know what she likes so I don’t mess up,”

“I don’t think you have to worry about that, Prisha,” Clem’s voice came from inside the dressing room. “Violet absolutely adores you. It may sound cliché, but you could wear a potato sack and she would still think you’re sexy,”

“Well, I hope she prefers whatever I choose to a potato sack!” Prisha huffed. “It certainly costs enough,”

“Is this your first time shopping for stuff like this?”

“Well, I’ve window shopped in the past,” Prisha answered, slipping on a different bra. “But I’ve never really had anybody to wear stuff like this for. You?”

“Same,” Clementine emerged from her dressing room in a teal number with black lace detailing. “Louis is my first in, well, a lot of regards. I’m glad you invited me along. I don’t think I’d have had the guts to shop for these sorts of things on my own,”

“The feeling’s mutual,” Prisha opened her door and gave a long, appreciative whistle as she looked at Clementine. “That one’s definitely sexier,”

“It’s a bit much for me,” Clementine awkwardly grabbed her own shoulder, looking toward the floor.

“Well, what exactly do you have in mind?”

“I don’t know, something pretty? I mean, they’re all pretty, but more…”

“Romantic?”

“Yeah, exactly!”

Prisha placed a finger to her lips. “Hmm, I bet I could find you something. Let me throw my clothes back on and take a look around.

“What about the one you just tried on? Do you like it?”

“Well, from the front it’s pretty,” Prisha motioned to the dark chocolate two piece set she was wearing. “But the back,” She slowly turned around to reveal that the underwear she had on was completely ass-less. “That’s a bit much even for me,”

Clementine tried to stifle a laugh. “Oh, definitely!”

\---

It took another hour of shopping before each of them found something that they truly felt they liked. As they stepped out into the chilly winter night with their purchases, Clementine and Prisha both shivered, pulling their scarves closer about their necks.

“What do you think Louis and Violet are up to right now?” Clementine asked, blowing a stray snowflake off of her nose.

“Knowing Violet she’s probably curled up in her favorite blanket eating some reheated nuggets from the restaurant and listening to a true crime podcast on her phone,”

Clem chuckled. “I wonder if she ever listens to those around Louis. They would freak him out. He’s probably home as well right now, fiddling around on the piano. Maybe he’ll write me a new song for Valentine’s,” 

Prisha couldn’t help but grin at the shy, happy smile that had crossed her friend’s face. Those two were such dorks.

As they reached the turnoff point where their paths would diverge, the girls turned to each other for one final farewell.

“I’ll see you at work tomorrow, so we’ll definitely have more time together before the big night, but in case I forget I’ll wish you the best of luck on tomorrow’s sexy escapades,” Prisha snapped her fingers in excitement. “Sexcapades!”

Clementine laughed good-naturedly at the pun. “Same goes for you, Prisha. I hope Violet’s reaction will be everything you could ever want. I’m sure you’ll have fun,”

“Till tomorrow then,” Prisha said with a wave.

“Yep, tomorrow. See you then!”

And so the two women went their separate ways, each with hearts full of anticipation for what was to come the very next day.


	2. Your Gift

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clementine and Prisha unveil their surprises.

“That dinner was amazing, Louis! Omar really outdid himself tonight,”

Louis smiled at Clementine as he let her into his apartment. Valentine’s Day had been perfect. He’d started it out by giving Clementine a huge bouquet of flowers and a card followed by chocolates, plushies and other little surprise gifts dispersed throughout the day. Seeing Clem’s face light up every time she received a new present was everything Louis had hoped for. After a Valentine’s dinner service they had finally cleared out the restaurant and Louis and Clementine had the place all to themselves with a special dinner personally designed for them by Omar. Every moment of the night had been magical. Now things were winding down and Louis had one final gift for Clementine: the piece of music he had written for her.

Entering the apartment, Louis dropped off his coat then sat at the piano bench, motioning for Clementine to sit beside him. Her cheeks were rosy from the cold outside air, and Louis impulsively leaned over to press a kiss to her cold skin. From her shy smile, he wondered if the remaining pink on her cheeks was from blushing.

“So,” he said, turning to the piano. “I’m sure this is a huge surprise that I wrote you a song for Valentine’s Day,”

“Oh, absolutely,” Clementine quipped, scooching closer on the bench.

“This song is meant to encompass… how I feel when I’m with you,” With that, Louis laid his fingers on the piano keys and began playing. It was a gentle song, sweet and steady. Perhaps someday he would compose something that captured the emotional heights he soared to in intimate moments with Clementine, but this song was about the everyday warmth she brought into his life, how she made him feel safe, feel loved. As he continued to play, Clementine gently placed her head on his shoulder, causing Louis’ heart to leap within him. It felt like they were frozen in time together, dwelling within the love that had grown between them these past months. He wouldn’t mind being in this moment with her forever.

But the song, like all things, did eventually come to a close. 

Clem stirred against Louis’ shoulder, as though woken from a reverie. “Louis…” she whispered, her voice laden with emotion. “Out of all the gifts you gave me today, that was by far the best,” Slowly, she leaned upward, catching his lips in a kiss. When they separated, her eyes were lidded. “Do you want to..?”

“A-absolutely!” Louis stammered, leaping up from the piano bench and striding toward the bedroom. He immediately internally chided himself. Did that sound too eager? Should he have given a calmer answer? Glancing back at Clementine though, he saw that she was smiling as well. She wasn’t holding back either. They entered the bedroom together, Louis quickly popping into the adjoining bathroom to grab a condom. He really needed to buy some sort of bedside table so he could store these in the drawer rather than rooting around for them each time.

“You doing OK in there?” Clementine asked.

“Yep! I just misplaced – wait a second, found ‘em!” Louis hurried back toward the bedroom only to freeze in his tracks when he saw Clementine. She was sitting on the corner of his bed wearing the most breath-taking lingerie he had ever seen. Granted, he hadn’t seen a lot of lingerie in his day, let alone in real-life, but in that moment Louis was sure this was the most stunning lingerie in existence. The bra and panties were both a warm rose color, lacy and romantic. The way the lace wrapped sensuously around Clementine’s curves had him utterly speechless. All he could do was stare at her in awestruck wonder.

“Do you like it?” Clem’s eyes were downcast, a pink dusting her cheeks that was most certainly blush this time.

“Holy shit, Clem,” Louis breathed. “You’re gorgeous,” Slowly he took a seat beside her, a hand reaching up hesitantly, but pausing.

“You can touch if you like,” Clementine said with a giggle.

Permission given, Louis slowly traced his fingers along the trim of her bra, meeting in the middle to softly cup her breasts. His eyes met Clementine’s as they both leaned forward, their lips meeting in a passionate kiss. Louis’ hands moved down to grab Clementine’s thighs, pulling her up into his lap. As he bit down on her lip, Clementine let out a soft groan which set his blood racing.

This lingerie wasn’t going to stay on for long.

\---

“God, that service felt like it was never going to end!” Prisha groaned, rolling her neck around her shoulders slowly. “Thank God Louis shut things down early so he and Clem could have the place to themselves!”

“Yeah,” Violet nodded. “Not sure if it was part of his plan, but Lou did end up giving the rest of us half the night off because of it,” She wouldn’t admit it openly, but she was slightly jealous of Louis for thinking to enlist Omar’s services before she did. It could have been her and Prisha having that Michelin level meal. Instead they were toting a bag of Chinese takeout home to Prisha’s place. Not exactly the best impression to make on their first Valentine’s together. Prisha didn’t seem to mind though. If anything, this was a normal night for her, albeit an especially tiring one. Maybe she should save the card for another night?

Prisha flipped on the lights as they entered and immediately headed toward her bedroom. “I’m gonna get changed. Make yourself at home,”

“O-Ok,” Violet awkwardly sat down on Prisha’s couch, setting her bag beside her. She hoped the flowers inside weren’t totally crushed. She should have taken them out sooner, but she didn’t want to do it in the restaurant where everyone would start oohing and aahing at them. Oh, she’d better set the takeout on the table before it bled through onto the couch. Standing up, Violet made her way into the kitchen with both bags. When she reached the kitchen, she noticed a bouquet already standing in a vase on the table. Had Prisha bought flowers for herself? It was a gorgeous bouquet, comprised of forget-me-nots, baby’s breath, and-

“Morning glories,” Violet spun around to find Prisha standing behind her, still wearing her winter coat. “For my Morning Glory,”

“Prish..”

Prisha stepped further into the kitchen, casually flipping over the card on the flowers which simply read “To: Violet From: Prisha”. “Sorry I left the card blank. You’d think I’d be better at coming up with something to say, but I never seem able to when it comes to cards,”

“They’re beautiful,” Violet murmured.

Prisha smiled. “I wanted them to reflect the beauty of their recipient,”

“I got some for you too! Flowers, I mean,” Violet stammered, rushing back into the living room and rooting through her bag. “They’re probably wilted since they’ve been out of water for hours now, but-” she thrust the bouquet forward. “Here,”

Prisha looked entranced by the flowers, a combination of tiger lilies, calla lilies and birds of paradise. She lifted the bouquet to her nose, inhaling deeply. “These are amazing, Violet. You have great taste,”

Violet shrugged. “I just picked out one of their pre-made options,”

“Still, they’re lovely,”

“I wanted to find ones that reminded me of you,” Violet awkwardly tugged on a lock of her hair. “And..” Should she give Prisha the card? It wasn’t much.

“And?”

“I… got you a card too,” Violet sat down on the couch as she began to search through her bag once more. “I’m not very good with writing in these either, so it’s short,” She handed the envelope over to Prisha, her eyes glued to the couch cushions as Prisha pulled out the card. It only took a second for Prisha to read what Violet had written. It was one simple sentence: _I’m glad you chose me._ Violet couldn’t be sure, but she thought she heard a soft intake of breath from Prisha before she was utterly silent. After a few seconds, Violet chanced a glance up at her girlfriend. Was she… crying?

“Wow,” Prisha murmured, shakily wiping a tear from her eye. “That was… wow. Thank you, Violet. For choosing _me_ ,”

“You’re welcome,” Violet replied lamely. As they gazed at each other though, Violet felt her awkwardness melting away, replaced by a happy, glowing warmth deep inside. To find someone who made her feel so complete, so safe… Violet had never expected this. She’d thought she and Prisha would simply brush off Valentine’s as some silly corporate holiday, but instead the night had blossomed into so much more.

Prisha suddenly broke the stillness as she tsked to herself, shaking her head. “God, I feel like such a fool now,”

“What? Why?”

“Well, here you are writing something so beautiful and heartfelt it moved me to tears, while all I got you for Valentine’s, well..” Prisha reached out to the belt on her coat, unfastening it and opening it up to reveal what lay underneath. “Was this,”

Violet’s heart just about leapt out of her throat. Prisha was wearing the sexiest lingerie imaginable. Black straps crisscrossed artistically across Prisha’s chest, forming a tapestry against her skin. Jet black fabric curved round her body effortlessly, roaming from her torso to her legs and morphing into thigh high black stockings held up by ebony garters. How the fuck had she not noticed that Prisha was wearing stockings ever since she appeared in the kitchen? Violet was completely overwhelmed. She felt a sort of euphoric panic rising inside of her as she took it all in.

“Vi, are you OK?” Prisha asked, waving a hand in front of her. “I know Clem said this set would get a reaction out of you, but some verbal confirmation would be reassuring. Do you like it?”

“Like it?” Violet squeaked. Since when was her voice this high? Where were her eyes looking? Had she been staring at Prisha’s boobs this entire time? “I-It’s too much,”

Prisha’s face fell. “Oh. I was trying to go for something classy, but I see how this could be a bit overboard…”

“Wait! Shit, no, Prisha, that’s not what I meant! I mean you’re too much. Just… fuck, you’re gorgeous,”

“Really?” Prisha’s face was glowing. “I mean, I don’t know if I’d go as far as that…”

“No,” Violet shook her head, standing up and reaching out to cup Prisha’s face. “Believe me when I say you are the most beautiful woman I have ever known,”

Prisha’s eyes were locked with Violet’s. Gently she reached out, pulling Violet into her lap. “Since when did you become so adept with your words? You’re a poet tonight, Vi,”

Suddenly Violet felt too warm. “Shit, I look so frumpy right now. I didn’t even bring a change of clothes,”

“You’re perfect,” Prisha whispered, reaching up and touching Violet’s lip with her thumb. Their lips met in a silent, deep kiss. Violet felt dizzy as they pulled apart.

“Should we… dinner…”

“Dinner can wait,” Prisha murmured, picking Violet up in her arms as she rose from the couch. “For now, we have other matters to focus on,” With that, she strode into the bedroom, closing the door behind them with a resounding clap.

\---

Louis and Violet sat at a booth in the diner, staring blankly into space, neither saying a word. Prisha and Clementine stood by the bar, Prisha cleaning out a shot class as Clementine absent-mindedly wiped down the counter. Both of them were distracted, watching their significant others.

“Do you think we… broke them?” Clementine asked worriedly.

Prisha shook her head. “I’m not sure. Vi seemed fine last night, but she’s barely said a word to me today. Has she said anything to you?”

“Not really. Louis has been practically mute too, which is borderline disturbing,”

“Do you think we made the right call, y’know, with our outfits?”

“I mean, I had a _fantastic_ night,”

“ _Same._ I just wished they’d open up today. It’s getting creepy,”

“For sure,”

Back at the booth, Louis finally stirred from his stupor, looking over at Vi. “Hey, last night, did Prisha…?”

“Yeah. Did Clementine?”

“Yeah,”

They resumed their silence, staring off into space once more. Violet’s plate of chicken nuggets were growing cold.

Finally, Violet broke the silence. “It was fucking amazing,”

Louis whistled in agreement.

There was another quiet pause between them before Louis spoke. “We have to pay them back,” His eyes met Violet’s. “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?”

“Probably not, but fuck it, I’m in. What do you have in mind?”

Louis’ eyes trailed over to where their girlfriends stood watching them. “Not here, it’s too public. We’ll meet tonight, at my place. Then the plan can begin,”

Violet sighed. “Is it already too late to back out?”

“Yep!” Louis shot her a devious smile. “We are going to put something together that will absolutely blow their minds!”

Violet couldn’t help but smile back. “Hell yeah,” She raised a nugget as a toast. “To tonight,”

“To tonight!”

Things were going to get wild.


	3. How the Turntables

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Louis and Violet decide to give their significant others surprises of their own <3

Violet’s doorbell rang at 5 AM sharp.

She opened the door to find Louis looking utterly exhausted and carrying a drink holder with four drinks. He stifled a yawn as he stepped inside her apartment.

“Well, I did it. I’m here at the butt crack of dawn as you asked and I come bearing coffee.” Violet opened her mouth to speak, but Louis raised a finger to show he wasn’t finished. “The chamomile is for you. The three coffees are for me,”

“Thanks,” Violet grabbed her drink, plopping down on her mattress and motioning for Louis to join.

He shook his head in disbelief. “I don’t know why we’re even meeting at your place. My place is way nicer,”

“Because you’re enough of a pushover to do what I tell you. Now let’s get started before I talk myself out of this whole thing,”

“OK, OK! Yeesh, I thought you were onboard with this!”

“Only until I regain my sanity,”

Louis plopped down beside Violet and pulled his laptop out from his messenger bag. “I’ve already been looking through some ideas. Tell me what you think,” He began scrolling through his preselected images.

“Gross. Gross. Gross. God, no. Gross. Gross.”

“Gee, Violet, at least provide some constructive criticism!”

“What am I supposed to say? I didn’t know that signing up for this would lead to you shoving a bunch of dicks in my face!”

“How did you think lingerie shopping would work?”

“I don’t know! Not like this!”

“Fine!” Louis huffed. “I’ll go through some of the options I thought would look cute on you,”

“God, imagining you imagining me in lingerie makes me want to hurl,”

“I will ignore your _nasty_ comments,” Louis said, taking a swig of his coffee. “And start the slideshow,”

“Gross. Gross. Gross. Fuck, no!”

“God, Vi, how are we going to pick out anything?”

It was a long morning.

\---

It took a few days for their online orders to arrive. Louis texted Vi as soon as his came in the mail, a bunch of flowers and heart eye emojis following his text.

_Please no pictures_

Violet threw her phone down on her mattress after sending the text. Her own package was laying there too, waiting to be opened.

Shit. She couldn’t back out now. With a sigh, Violet took a knife to the packaging, slowly unearthing the items she would be wearing tonight.

\---

An hour later, Violet stood in front of Prisha’s door, dressed in her regular t-shirt, jeans and scuffed up sneakers. Nothing about her looked out of the ordinary. As she waited for Prisha to open the door, Violet felt a line of sweat running down her back. Fuck. That was very unsexy. What if all this nervous sweat soaked into the lingerie? She needed to go into the bathroom and double check before things went any farther.

“Hey, Vi!” Prisha smiled warmly as she opened the door for her girlfriend, leaning forward to kiss her on the cheek. “You’re looking cute today,”

“Uh, thanks,” Violet murmured, slithering into the room and dropping her bag by the door. “I have to use the bathroom,”

“Sure. Dinner will be ready soon, I just have to pull it out of the oven,”

Violet nodded absent-mindedly. She hadn’t heard what Prisha said at all. Locking the bathroom door behind her, she thrust up her shirt, looking at herself in the mirror. No sweat stains so far. Still, the night was young. She had to get through a whole dinner before she could do the big reveal. And Prisha was cooking Indian food. Fuck, she was doomed.

“Just got it out of the oven!” Prisha called from the kitchen.

“O-OK! Be right there!” Violet turned to look at herself in the mirror. “You can do this,” she whispered, pointing at herself authoritatively. “You’re Victory Violet! No backing out,”

No backing out. She was doing this.

\---

Thankfully, dinner went smoothly. Prisha’s presence was calming, and Violet quickly found her thoughts occupied with other matters. Whenever the latent sense of panic began to rise within her, she thrust it back down. She wasn’t going to chicken out. Louis would never let her hear the end of it if she did. And, more importantly, she wanted to do this. For Prisha. To show how much she meant to her.

Once they had finished dinner and quickly washed the dishes, Prisha ambled into the living room. She wandered over to her DVD selection on her bookshelf behind the couch.

“So, what would you like to do? We could watch a movie. I’ve been meaning to introduce you to Bollywood, and I think I found the perfect movie to start with: _Lagaan_ ,”

“Um, ok,” Violet shrugged, trying to look casual. They could start with a movie. “How long is it?”

Prisha checked the back of the DVD case. “3 hours and 45 minutes,”

“What the fuck! Seriously?”

Prisha shrugged. “We don’t have to watch it all in one sitting if you don’t want to. I just figured it’s the weekend, so we could stay up late if we wanted. No pressure though,”

“I…. there’s something I need to do first,”

Prisha quirked her eyebrow. “OK,”

“Something I need to show you,”

“Color me intrigued,”

“T-turn around. And close your eyes,”

“OK. I have to say, I wasn’t expecting a surprise,” Prisha said, her hands over her eyes and back turned. “My birthday’s still 4 months away,”

“I know,” Violet’s mouth felt dry. As silently as possible, she began to undress, tossing her clothes onto Prisha’s couch. It felt like forever, but she ran out of clothes far too fast. With nothing left to do, Violet gave the go ahead.

“You can open your eyes. And turn around,”

“Wonderful! Now, where’s the-” Prisha froze as she took in what Violet was wearing. It was very simple lingerie: a warm gray with soft, fluid lines. Comfortable, casual. Along the corners of the bra and beside each hip, small embroidered gray flowers lay scattered across the fabric.

The room was silent as both girls looked at each other.

Prisha’s expression was unreadable.

_Shit, she hates it. God, I feel so stupid. I should have gone with something bolder like Louis suggested. I probably look like a kid wearing this. It’s so simple and… fuck, I wish she would say something._

“P-Prisha?”

Silently, Prisha raised her phone in front of her. The camera shutter clicked.

_Did she just…?_

“Did you just take a picture?”

“Damn, Violet,” Prisha breathed. “You look simply-”

“Give me the phone!”

“What?”

“Give me the phone!” Violet screeched, jumping across the couch toward her girlfriend.

“But why? You look so cute!” Prisha easily held her cellphone out of Violet’s grasp. Violet leapt up in desperation, trying to knock it out of her hand.

“This is embarrassing enough already! I don’t need a photo that anybody could just come across!”

“It’s for my own personal enjoyment, I swear! Please, Vi?” Prisha lowered her phone and batted her eyelashes. “You just looked so precious, I… I wanted to capture the moment,”

Violet looked up into her girlfriend’s eyes. Then she leapt forward to whack the phone out of her hands.

“No!” Prisha squealed, running around the couch. “I won’t delete it! You can’t make me!”

“Damnit, Prisha!” Violet cursed as she chased her in circles. “This is not how things were supposed to go!”

Prisha giggled as she ran into the bedroom, Violet hot on her heels. She leapt across the bed and tried to circle round, but Violet had her cornered. In a panic, she threw Prisha on top of the bed, pinning her arms down on either side of her. The chase abruptly concluded, the two gazed at each other, taking in loud gasps of air as both tried to catch their breath.

Violet realized the position she had put Prisha in and immediately backed off, sitting on her knees and grasping her own arm as self-consciousness set in. “Sorry, I went too far there,”

“No, it’s my fault,” Prisha said, propping herself up on her elbows. “If it’s that important to you, I can delete the photo. I’m sorry I overstepped,”

“It’s not that. You just… took me by surprise is all,” Violet nodded toward the phone. “You can keep the photo. As long as you promise to never show it to anybody,”

“Oh, believe me,” Prisha murmured, leaning forward. “This is a sight I want to keep all to myself,”

Violet felt her cheeks growing hot as Prisha brushed a strand of hair away from her face. “I know it’s pretty simple. I could have gone for something fancier,”

“No,” Prisha shook her head. “It’s perfect. It’s you. Thank you for showing me,”

Violet smiled shyly. “So,” she murmured, tracing a finger along the hemline of Prisha’s jeans. “No movie tonight?”

“Definitely not. I have something much more entertaining in mind,” They both giggled as Prisha rolled them both over so that she was on top. “Should I slip into something sexier before we begin?”

“No,” Violet gently cupped her cheek. “I want you just the way you are. Right here, right now,”

Prisha’s eyes widened in surprise before she let out a flustered laugh. “And I thought I was the smooth one,”

“We both have our moments,”

Prisha bent down, placing a kiss on Violet’s lips, deepening it as their hands found each other.

This would be a night that neither of them would forget.


	4. A Sexy Surprise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's Clouis' turn!

Damn, he was nervous.

Louis lay on top of his bed, trying to find a way to artistically drape himself across the bedspread. The rose petals he had laid out were getting smushed every time he shifted his weight. The flowers on his bureau were already liquefied. Louis checked his phone for the 50th time. He had definitely set up too early. Clementine wasn’t due for another 15 minutes. How had he thought that the setup would take him an entire half hour?

He awkwardly shifted his legs beneath him. Why was he even trying to hold a pose right now? Did he think he could hold it for a quarter hour? His abs would be dying. With a sigh, Louis flopped down on the bed, opening his phone and beginning to scroll through his Instagram feed. Between aesthetic shots of sunsets and videos of Willy, A.J. and Tenn’s various escapades, he got an ad for Ericson’s Diner, which made him smile. Apparently the Instagram algorithm was spot on for their target demographic.

As he continued to scroll, Louis paused on a photo Clementine had posted on her Insta, theclemsterstrikesagain. She didn’t post to her page very often, and the pictures were never of herself. Rather, she captured little moments in her own daily life with her own pithy interpretations. This picture was clearly taken in Ericson’s, one of the booths being in the foreground of the shot. In the background, two blurred bodies looked to be engaging in combat. The caption read _Hug attack <3_.

He remembered this moment; it had happened a few days ago. Violet had just announced that the chicken nuggets he made her were “approaching adequacy”. He had been so excited to receive the smidgen of a compliment that he had lifted Violet into the air with the force of his hug, much to her displeasure in part because the rest of the nuggets had been knocked onto the ground. She had forgiven him though. He hadn’t known Clementine had captured that moment. He’d have to ask her to send the pic to him later.

“Louis? Are you home?”

Shit, that was Clem. He had to get in position! Frantically, Louis tossed his phone toward his bookshelf. Instead of landing safely, it ricocheted off the edge and smacked into the wall before falling to the floor. Barely concealing his cry of distress, Louis stumbled off his bed, reaching for his rogue phone.

“I hope you don’t mind that I let myself in. You said it was some sort of emergency?”

Louis turned his phone over in his hands. Of course, the screen had cracked. No time for that now though.

“Uh, Clem, just give me a minute, ‘K?” Louis spun around to see that all the petals had fallen off the bed with his comforter which was draped askew after his hurried departure to rescue his phone. Crouching down, he thrust the comforter back into position before grabbing handfuls of petals off the floor and desperately throwing them into the air, hoping they landed in some sort of artistic manner on the bed.

“Is something wrong? You don’t usually send such serious texts,”

He didn’t to her. He was always careful to hold back on the drama when texting Clementine. Years of texting Violet however had majorly decreased his sensitivity to what constituted an emergency text as only the most drastic language was able to break through Violet’s apathy to draw out a response. He’d let his nervousness get to him and sent Clem a Violet level text.

“Ha ha, my bad! Just give me a minute and I-” His fingers caught the edge of one of the pillows, sending it flying across the room and knocking over his bedroom lamp. Louis silently swore as he jettisoned himself across the bed, tumbling to the other side.

“What was that sound?”

“Nothing!”

“Louis, I’m coming in!”

He had only seconds to respond. Tossing the broken lamp into the corner, Louis threw himself back onto the bed, wildly striking the first swimwear pose that came to mind. As the door opened, he tried to still his heaving chest.

\---

Clementine hadn’t been sure what to expect when she opened that door. Knowing Louis, she had figured he had started a fire in his kitchen or gotten a finger caught in something. At the same time though, he had included a time of arrival. _EMERGENCY COME AT 7_ was an exceedingly weird text. One thing was for sure, she didn’t expect to open the door to find her boyfriend panting as he lay sprawled across his bed wearing nothing but a pair of lace briefs.

“Evening,” Louis’ voice was shaky, from exertion or nerves, she couldn’t tell.

Clementine paused in the doorway, trying to take in what she was seeing. A broken lamp lay in the corner of the room tucked behind the bookshelf, while on the floor by her feet Louis’ iPhone was flashing some sort of silent alarm, a large crack running diagonally across the screen. What had he been doing in here? Her eyes met Louis’s and in an instant she saw the smile drop from his face, replaced by shame.

“Shit, this was a terrible idea. I’ll get some clothes on,”

“No, Louis, wait!” Clementine stepped forward, lifting her hands in protest. “You surprised me is all. From the tone of the text, I thought I was going to need to bring a fire extinguisher along,”

“Yeah, sorry about that,” Louis awkwardly scratched the back of his neck. “In hindsight, I could have toned that text down like eighty percent,”

Clementine felt her mind slowly catching up to the current situation. She took in the scented candles lining the top shelf, the rose petals scattered all over the bed and the floor. She took in Louis, and as her eyes drifted downward she finally really noticed what he was wearing.

She’d never seen lace briefs on a guy before. Black lace at that. She liked the way it looked on him, how the softness of the lace contrasted with the sharp lines of his hipbones, how his thighs swelled underneath the fabric as he adjusted his position.

She looked up into his eyes once more. Louis looked so afraid, so vulnerable. A single dreadlock had fallen onto his face and was partly covering one of his eyes. She wanted to brush it away. She wanted to take his face in her hands and drag her teeth along his bottom lip until he opened his mouth to let her inside. Just looking into those vibrant eyes was sending her heart into a cascading tumble throughout her entire core.

“Clem?”

She should say something. She was coming up blank. She at least needed to do something. So she tentatively crawled up onto the bed, drawing near enough to feel the warmth of his breath on her skin. Her hands lifted up, finding a place on his chest, mapping the planes and curves of his freckled skin. The warmth of it under her fingers… he was always so warm, as if the brightness of his soul was so dynamic that it radiated from within. Clementine finally found her voice again. “Is this what it felt like when you saw me?”

“I-I don’t know,” Louis stammered, his eyes trained on her hands. “When I saw you, I thought that you were the most beautiful thing in the entire world,'

“Then it is the same,”

Louis’ eyes met hers in shock, then an elated smile broke out across his face.

“How long have you been planning this?” Clementine reached up to brush a dreadlock behind his ear.

“Ever since you surprised me. Violet and I both picked out something and have been waiting for the weekend to try it out,”

“You got Violet to do it too? I’m impressed,”

“Well, it certainly wasn’t easy! She _promised_ that she was in and then as soon as I started showing examples she was trying to wriggle her way out… of… it,” His words had fizzled out as Clementine pressed her face into the crook of his neck.

She felt her arms reaching up, her hands clasping his hair between her fingers and Louis’ body easing back as he fell upon the pillows beneath them. A hum of approval came from deep in Clementine’s throat. “Let’s even things out, shall we?” she murmured, crossing her arms and lifting her shirt above her head. Thank God she had possessed the foresight to put on a new bra.

Louis’ hands were on her hips, rubbing circles into her skin. “Are you ready?”

“Do you have a condom handy?”

The light went out of Louis’ eyes as he threw his head back on the pillow in despair. “Fuck, I knew I forgot something! Don’t move, I’ll get one,”

“Wait!” Clementine dug into the front pocket of her jeans, fishing out a condom and holding it between her index and middle finger.

Louis looked at her in shock.

“Always be prepared?”

Louis grinned. “You really are amazing. You know that?”

“I’ve been told from time to time,” Clementine smirked down at him. Her smirk quickly disappeared into a squeal as Louis flipped her over, his own laughter mixing with hers.

\---  
The next day, Clementine and Prisha locked eyes from across the bar. Ambling over, Clementine took a seat on one of the barstools. Prisha slid her a drink, one of the sodas she kept stashed under the bar for staff hearts-to-hearts. Clementine took a long swig before placing her drink down and meeting Prisha’s eyes again.

“So…”

“So?”

“That was unexpected,”

“Indeed,”

“But _certainly_ not unappreciated,”

“On the contrary,”

Clementine took another sip of her drink. “I didn’t think Lou had it in him. And here he goes surprising me and making me realize what a turn-on lingerie really is,”

Prisha nodded enthusiastically. “Oh, definitely! Violet wore the cutest two piece set last night. I wish I could show you. It was-” Prisha’s words were cut short as she was unceremoniously tackled to the ground by a screaming Violet.

“You promised me you wouldn’t share the picture with anyone! You swore!”

“I wasn’t going to show the photo! I was just talking about last night!”

“Stop creating a mental image of me in lingerie in front of my friends! It’s weird!”

“Well excuuuuse me for wanting to tell the world how adorable you are!”

Clementine chuckled as she picked up her soda and walked away from the bar. Behind her, she could hear Prisha and Violet continuing to argue over what she was sure must be an incredibly incriminating photo. Life was never boring at Ericson’s Diner. Spotting Louis talking to Ruby at the entrance to the kitchen, she offered a quick wave which he immediately returned, a bright smile on his face. God, she loved that boy.

Maybe it was time that she told him that.


End file.
